New Format To 52nd Knoxville Nationals Will Add Drama

A new format for next Friday’s 52nd Annual Goodyear Knoxville Nationals has had the sprint car world buzzing since it was announced this spring. Normally, the top 20 drivers in points are locked into Saturday’s championship A-Main. This year however, the top 16 will be locked in after Wednesday and Thursday night qualifying. Starting with points position 17, drivers will have to decide, do they race on Friday, starting all over and try again to race their way into the A-Main, filling in positions 17-20, or stand on their points, hoping they get locked into the B-Main which would start with position 21. Raceway General Manager Toby Kruse says this new format adds a little intrigue to the Nationals. The old format was always considered non-qualifiers night which was the drivers who did not lock into the top 40 in points. Along with the new format, the Speed Sport News World Challenge will also take place which pits drivers from the United States, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada with the winner pocketing $10,000.